Delhi sees a spate of 'passion' murders on New Year's eve

Ringing in the New Year with parties and drinks cost at least four persons their lives in Delhi and interestingly, all the incidents have something to do with "love or lust".

Ringing in the New Year with parties and drinks cost at least four persons their lives in Delhi and interestingly, all the incidents have something to do with "love or lust".

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A 60 year old woman raped and killed by her husband's employer, a teenager who went out with a friend found murdered after "consensual sex", a youth battered to death for sending obscene text messages to friend's girl friend and an executive burnt to death by his lady love's brother.

All this happened on the New Year eve or minutes into the new decade, when the city was under the prying eyes of thousands of policemen who were deployed to check no untoward incident take the sheen out of celebrations.

The New Year dawn saw three bodies being discovered in different parts of the capital; one of a teenaged girl in Dwarka, a youth in Keshavpuram and another in Dakshinpuri. "We had some unfortunate incidents. We have cracked most of them. Investigations are on in some incidents. There was some sort of rage," a senior police official said.

In one of the shocking cases, a drink with her husband's employer proved costly for a 60 year old woman in north Delhi's Majnu Ka Tila when he allegedly murdered her after raping her on New Year eve. Achey Lal, who was 15 years younger to her and earlier acquitted in a rape case, was arrested for the offence. He initially tried to mislead police by claiming that she was a "motherly figure" but later he broke down. Lal told police that his wife had gone to her native place since a long time and his sexual desires were not being fulfilled.

"On December 31, he reached her house and sent her husband for work. They both consumed alcohol and after this, Lal allegedly attacked her. "When the victim tried to resist, he shut her mouth with a cloth which led to her death," Rupinder Kumar, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (North), said.

The body of a 17 year old girl, who left her Lady Harding hospital servants quarters with a "known" person on the eve of New Year, was found in a barren plot in Dwarka. Investigators are clueless on the motive that led to her murder four days after her body was found. "She had consensual sex with someone before she was killed. But what led to the murder, we are yet to find out," Sharad Aggarwal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South-West), said.

Two youths -- Vaibahv Mishra (28) and Rocky (23)-- were also killed on the New Year eve. Mishra was killed by his girl friend's brother who was opposed to the relationship, while Rocky was murdered by his two "close friends", one of whom was "angry" at the victim sending obscene text messages to his girl friend.